Hello my fellow plant lovers!! Welcome to my first blog post. If you are in Oklahoma (and surrounding states) I am sure that you are using the same word to describe your garden as I am “HOT.”

First let’s talk about how the heat maybe affecting your garden. If you have a veggie garden, your tomatoes may have stopped (if they ever got started) producing fruit. This is because of the ambient air temperature. Pollen in the tomato flower slows down and even become sterile in high temperatures. But put that shovel away. Once we cool off, the tomatoes will fruit again. So put those salad bowls and hopes for fresh bruschetta aside for now and keep those fingers crossed.

Another effect the heat has on our gardens is death (I know I didn’t want to say it). But, you may have noticed that quite a few trees have gone……..well, not-so pretty anymore. Some trees and shrubs will "give-up," but have no fear, they are ‘"hoosing their battles." For some trees and shrubs it’s easier to drop their leaves and "go to bed." This is referred to as summer dormancy. Fortunately the vascular cambium of plants is close to its outer layer (like the outside ring in a tree). This enables us to do a simple test or check the heart beat. Simply scratch the outside of some new growth, if you see green then there is life and we can wait for those secondary buds to break later. If you see brown, check a few other places to be sure. If you think that you have lost a tree and can scar the oldest of wood never seeing green then you may want to wait until fall (the best time to plant trees and shrubs) and replant. If you are concerned about a shrub or vining plant, wait till after the last frost of this upcoming winter. The shrub may come back from the ground, after all you’re a gardener – patient and optimistic and you know, worst case you can replant in the spring. A lot of herbaceous perennials, such as columbine, will enter a summer dormancy as well. Therefore my finial word to you is "wait, it could come back."  

Next, let’s talk about grass. No not that pretty stuff like Festuca ovina ‘Elijah Blue’ or Melinis nerviglumis ‘Savannah’ (an Oklahoma Proven plant). But that area between your house and the street. Watering is the most misunderstood aspect of lawn management. Now I know that you are not "that person" that runs their irrigation system every day. But I know that you know"‘that person, like that bank down the street that runs their irrigation system in the rain!! So here is me on my soap-box (feel free to print this off and tape it to that bank’s front door, I won’t tell). Frequent and light irrigation on lawn encourages weed seed germination, soil compaction, thatch, shallow rooting and a high water bill. Typically (and you should apply this for every plant) you should irrigate when the lawn shows signs of stress such as a blue-green color or no "bounce." Then water until you moisten to a 6” depth, if you start to pool water or water runs off, then stop. Mowing is determined by species, some Bermuda is .5” to 3”. I always use the old saying “cut it high in July."

Finally, a topic that we have already touched on, irrigation. The best way to water your garden (drum roll please) is by drip irrigation. Hang around for later post and I will show you how to build a drip irrigation system for not a lot of money. Drip irrigation systems apply water directly to the soil creating an "upside down cone" pattern of moisture beneath the soil surface. You’ll water only the plant that you are trying to keep alive and not the weed in the back corner. It can improve the production of fruiting crops like tomatoes as well. For those that don’t have a drip irrigation system and are trying to keep their gardens alive during this heat, let me offer this plan. Abandon that sprinkler (that is if you don’t have a massing of plants but more of an individual planting) grab your hose and ever-so-slightly turn it on to a little more than a drip. Place the hose next to the plant that needs water (remember we only water when we start to see decline) and go weed another area of the garden. As you're weeding, watch for runoff, then move it to the next plant that is asking for a drink. This will enable you to water only the plants that you want to keep alive and save on water.

Hopefully you can get this all done before your garden turns into the surface of the sun – leaving you to retire to chilling wine and the AC.

Cheers everyone, see you next post!